1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for delivering newborn avian chicks to grow-out houses, more particularly to improvements in the method of delivery of these newborn chicks. In addition, this invention relates to an apparatus and method which achieves much greater biosecurity for the newborn chicks, automates the delivery of these chicks, allows for much greater efficiency in the delivery of these chicks, reduces workplace injuries, and minimizes the weather-related deaths of newborn chicks.
2. Description of the Related Art
Historically, newborn avian chicks are loaded for transport to grow-out houses by manually placing approximately 100 chicks into a plastic box which is open at the top with the sides and bottom perforated to allow for air flow. These boxes typically are about 18 inches wide by 24 inches long and 5 inches high. With a per chick average weight of 1.6 ounces and approximately 100 chicks per box, the total weight of the box with chicks averages 15 pounds. The loaded boxes are then nested on top of a wheeled dolly at the hatchery until a vertical column of between eight and ten boxes is stacked. With the average of 100 chicks per box, these vertical columns of boxes will then contain between 800 to 1,000 chicks and range in weight between 120 and 150 pounds.
The wheeled dolly on the bottom of each column of boxes allows for maneuvering within the hatchery and these columns of boxes are pushed or pulled to the back of the delivery vehicle which is usually parked at a loading dock at the hatchery building. Normally, the elevation of loading dock and the floor of the delivery vehicle are within a few inches of each other, allowing for the columns of boxes filled with chicks to be pulled off the wheeled dollies and onto the inside floor of the delivery vehicle. Typically, 20,000 to 60,000 chicks are loaded into the delivery vehicle in this manner.
From the hatchery, the loaded delivery vehicle proceeds to a grow-out house with a crew of two to four workers whose duty it is to unload the chicks from the delivery vehicle and place them in the controlled atmosphere inside the grow-out house. Normally, a grow-out house has large doors on each end and a series of small personnel doors spaced approximately 60 feet apart on one side of the structure. To maintain the integrity of the controlled atmosphere of the grow-out house, the chicks are typically delivered to the interior of the grow-out house through the small personnel doors located on the side of the building instead of through the large end doors.
In order to deliver the chicks to the interior of the grow-out house, the workers carry the boxes of chicks from the delivery truck to the interior of the building and empty the boxes onto the floor. In the past, each worker would carry as many as eight boxes from the vehicle at one time. This procedure caused many injuries to the workers, particularly back-related injuries. A stack of multiple nested boxes is not only heavy and bulky, but is further complicated by a worker needing to navigate over a vertical door threshold which is 6 to 12 inches higher than the exterior grade. In addition, once inside the building, the worker is required to step over two water lines and a feed line which vary in height from 6 to 10 inches higher than the soft litter bed floor. Also, workers experienced many foot and ankle injuries while carrying the heavy and bulky chick boxes over the soft litter bed floor. More recently, because of the numerous injuries as well as the difficulty finding workers willing to perform the manual labor, workers are now being limited in the number of chick boxes that can be carried in one trip to one to four boxes.
Of course, this reduction in the number of boxes that may be carried has reduced the number of employment-related injuries but it has also greatly increased the time required to place the chicks inside the grow-out houses. The number of chicks placed in a grow-out house from one delivery vehicle varies between 12,000 to 30,000 depending on the size of the grow-out house. On the average, about 20,000 chicks equating to approximately 200 boxes are placed in a grow-out house at one time.
Methods and apparatus for loading full grown birds from the grow-out house into a vehicle have been developed but none of these developments address the preceding problems nor address the delivery of newborn avian chicks. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,722,477, issued Mar. 27, 1973 describes an apparatus for loading adult poultry into compartments or coops by utilizing a retractable and extendable telescopic conveyor. Through use of this telescoping conveyor, the poultry is delivered first to the rear of the compartment or coop then progressively outward toward the door of this compartment or coop while the telescoping conveyor is being retracted. One of the objects of this design was to eliminate the manual handling of the birds which may cause injury.
Although the potential for injury to the birds may be reduced and the loading of birds into compartments or coops is automated, problems still remain for this apparatus to be beneficial for delivering newborn chicks into a grow-out house. This apparatus is not self-propelled and requires attachment to a powered vehicle for transportation from one location to another. This would create delays in the delivery of the newborn chicks as well as require additional assets and labor for transportation and set-up. Also, the boxes of newborn chicks would need to be unloaded from the delivery vehicle before the chicks are deposited on the conveyor. This necessity does not eliminate weather-related problems and the resulting mortality of the newborn chicks. In addition, the limited movement of the discharge end of this conveyor would result in piles of chicks inside the grow-out house.
Another design for loading poultry with a minimal amount of labor was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,089 issued May 11, 1999. This patent describes a poultry loading apparatus which includes a conveying system that has a telescoping end that extends into and retracts from a coop during the loading process. This system uses hydraulics to control the various functions including conveyor speed, leveling, height adjustment, and the telescoping.
Problems utilizing this design for newborn chicks still remain. The apparatus is not self-propelled and requires additional power, assets, manpower, and time to relocate and set up. Weather also remains a concern regarding the health of the newborn chicks.
The use of suction and air pressure for handling adult poultry is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,706,300 issued Dec. 19, 1972. The suction is applied to the poultry in a poultry house to urge the same into a conveying conduit, then air pressure is applied forcing the poultry along the conduit and into a suitable conveyance-mounted bin. The poultry conduit described in this patent is not vehicle mounted while the blower is mounted on the conveyance and powered by a gasoline engine.
The method and apparatus described in this patent is not suitable for newborn chicks because the suction and air pressure required to urge the chicks through the conduit would result in an unacceptable mortality rate for the chicks as well as uneven flow that would result in a clogged conduit. Also, the conduit requires an independently powered machine to transport it from location to location.
Still another attempt to solve the difficulties surrounding the loading of full grown turkeys is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,338 issued Jun. 29, 1999. This patent discloses a conveying system that conveys the full grown turkeys to a moveable loading box mounted at the discharge end of the conveyor. From this loading box the turkeys are then unloaded into a coop in a trailer when the exit of the loading box is opened and the support surface is moved to urge the turkeys out of the box and into the coop.
Problems with this system for newborn avian chicks exist. The conveyor is not self-propelled requiring additional manpower, assets, and time to set up. Also, the system only provides for the loading to occur in one coop at a time. Should this system be utilized for newborn avian chicks, the chicks would pile up at the discharge end of the conveyor resulting in high mortality rates.
In summary, various loading and delivery systems for chickens and turkeys are already known. Some devices utilizing these methods include powered conveying systems including telescoping conveyors, retractable telescoping conveyor systems, suction and air, and moving belts within a transportation vehicle. Other designs of extendable and telescoping conveyors exist but none are satisfactory for transporting newborn chicks and will result in unsatisfactory mortality rates.
3. Objects of the Invention
The primary object and purpose of my invention, therefore, is to address the aforementioned problems as well as the problems associated with use of the prior art for chick delivery and provide a method and apparatus for delivering and distributing newborn avian chicks into the interior of a grow-out house in an efficient and bio-effective manor while reducing the need for manual labor to only one worker.
Another object of my invention is to distribute the chicks over a large floor area of the litter bed thus preventing the chicks from piling up vertically which would compromise their ability to breathe sufficient air and therefore suffocate.
It is yet another object of my invention to increase the biosecurity of the grow-out farm by eliminating the need for transporting the plastic chick boxes inside the individual grow-out houses, thereby reducing or eliminating the possibility of cross-contamination between houses or farms. This cross-contamination can be caused by harmful transferrable bacteria or viruses on the surface of the boxes.
It is still another object of my invention to deliver a large number of avian chicks to the interior of the grow-out house in a short period of time.
Yet another object of my invention to substantially reduce or eliminate workplace injuries by eliminating the need to carry boxes of chicks into the grow-out house.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.